| Reviewers Comments: | If you are looking for recipes for a variety of fruits and vegetables to use in your nutrition classes, this resource may be perfect for you. There are 48 fruits and vegetables included in total, ranging from common produce, such as apples and lettuce, to items that may not be familiar to readers, such as cassava and okra. There are also four types of beans included: black beans, kidney beans, lentils, and pinto and great northern beans.
Each page is devoted to a different fruit or vegetable, and includes key points, tips for use, and two recipes. Keys points for each fruit or vegetable include a recommendation for buying, preparing, and storing the item and a selected health benefit. Three tips are included in a sidebar, with suggested uses for the item. Both the key points and the tips are summarized in a short sentence or two at most. The recipes are mostly simple and easy to follow, and feature dishes that can be used for breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert or as menu accompaniments. While the number of ingredients at times can be plentiful, most are easy to find and low cost items. Similarly, while some recipes have multiple steps, most are simple directions that are provided help make preparation easier. Although the number of servings yielded per recipe is included, there is no serving size, preparation time or nutritional information given.
The layout and graphics of the book are simple and consistent, making it easy to find the information for which you are looking. Some of the graphics are slightly fuzzy, due to photocopying of pages. The font of the item name, key points, and tips are large and easy to read, however, the recipe font is a little smaller and more condensed. This may lessen the readability of that portion for some readers. The cookbook may be used as an instructional tool in a classroom setting or as a resource guide for someone looking for recipes for fruits and vegetables. Its ease of use and low reading level make it appropriate as a stand alone tool for multiple audiences, including children, low literate adults, educated home cooks, and older adults. The abundance of fruits and vegetables included and the ease of explanation of preparation may encourage individuals to try new items they have not experienced before. This resource can be a very useful educational tool when promoting preparation of new foods.
For more information about the Just Say Yes program, please see their Web site.
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